Well-casing grapple.



E; C, AR TZT. WELL CASING GRAPPLE. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 8. I917.

11 R MGR RT Z'T attozmt;

Patented Apr.. 30;, 1918.

para sraarns rattan-far r sen,

ERIGI-I c..a:arzr, or TWIN SISTERS, Texas.

WELLCASING enArrLn.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Enron C. ARTZT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Twin Sisters, in the county of Blanco, State of Texas, have invented a new and useful Well-Casing Grapple; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and

' casing or pipe when lowering it into position within the well opening or withdrawing it therefrom, thereby enabling the casing to be handled without danger of slipping or accident.

Further objects of the invention are to provide a well easing grapple which is com,- paratively simple and inexpensive in its construction, which can be adjusted to fit different sizes of casings, which can be easily taken apart for repairs, and which will enable a well casing or pipe to be raised or lowered without difficulty.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in certain novel combinations and arrangements of the parts as will more fully appear as the description proceeds, the novel features thereof being pointed out in the appended claims For a full understanding of the invention, reference is to be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a well casing grapple constructed in accordance with the invention, the locking pawl of the fixed frame at the orifice of the well being shown as swung into inoperative position for the purpose of lowering the casing 1nto the well opening.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view through the hoisting grapple.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the same.

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the fixed grapple member which arranged at the orlfice of the well to support the casing and prevent retrograde movement thereof when the hoisting grapple is being moved to obtain a fresh grip upon the casing.

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view I through the same.

Specification of Letters Patent. Pwhgntgdl 'Apr, 3(1), iota,

Application filed September 8, 1917.

Serial No. 190,343.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the following description and indicated in all the views of the drawings by the same reference characters.

Referring to the drawings, the reference character A designates a well opening, B a

bed or platform which is arranged at the orifice of the well opening, and C a conventional casing or pipe with which the sides of the well opening are to be cased off. A horizontally disposed open frame 1, which preferably has a U-shaped formation, rests upon the bed 13, and will be termed the fixed frame to distinguish it from the grapple frame, since it remains stationary upon the bed B during the operation of raising or lowering the casing C, while the trap or frame is connected to the hoisting means and is movable up and down therewith. A yoke 2 is slidably mounted within the U- shaped frame 1, the curved end of the yoke facing toward the closed end of the U- shaped frame, and the upper edge of the yoke being formed with an outstanding flange 2 which rests upon the upper edges of the sides of the fixed frame 1. The sides of the yoke slidably engage the inner faces of the sides of the U-shaped frame 1, while the curved end of the yoke forms a fixed abutment for one side of the casing C. A cross bar 3 is applied to the curved end of the yoke, being secured to the middle thereof by a suitable fastening member 4:, the ends of the cross bar sliding against the sides of the frame 1 and openings being provided between the said ends of the crossbar and curved portions of the yoke for the reception of clamping bolts 5 which are adapted to be tightened to assist in holding the yoke in an adjusted position. An adjusting screw 6 is threaded in the endof the U-shaped frame 1 and provides additional means for holding the yoke in operative position and enabling it to resist the side thrust of the casing C due to engagement thereof with the locking pawl E when the latter is in operative engagement with the pipe. This pawl has an opposed relation to the abutment provided by the curved end of the yoke, and is pivotally mounted upon a removable bolt 7, both the bolt and pawl be ing taken out of position when fitting the frame 1 to the well casing G or removing it therefrom. A cross bar 8 is secured to the locking pawl E, the ends of the cross bar being extended upwardly at 8 for slidably engaging the sides of the yoke 2 to hold the pawl against lateral movement, while th extremities thereof are extended outwardly at 8 to provide stop arms for engagement with the upper edges of the yoket-o limit the downward swingingmovement of "the pawl. The upper bar 9 connects the outwardly extended endsS of the cross bar 8 and provides a handle member which can be conveniently grasped when swinging'the pawl upwardly into operative position to, release the casing, this being necessary when loweringa length of well casing-or pipe into the well.

The specific formation of the pawl E is animportant feature of the invention, sinceit provides a; very effective arrangement whereby a securegrip is always insured, thereby making any accidental slipping of the well casing practically impossible. This locking pa-wl is shown as formed of a double thickness of-material 10, a pivot eye 10 for thereception of the bolt 7-being provided at the fold of :thedoubled thickness, while a thirdthickness 11 is interposed between the two thicknesses 10, the several thick nessesbei-ngheld together by a removable fasteningpmemberlQ which may also be utiliZed for securing the locking pawl to the crossbar. The ends of thethicknesseslO and ll'at the swingingend'ofthe pawl terminate inxsharpenededges 1O andll respectively, saidedges being transversely disposed" and having a spaced relation to each other. so thatthey will bite into the casing and obtain a securegrip upon the same at all times. When the sharp edges 10 and 11 become dull, after a period of use, the fastening. member 12 can beremoved and the intermediate thickness 11 withdrawn-from between the doubled thicknesses 10, thereby enabling the. edges to be readily sharpened by theuseof a file. If necessary, the doubled thicknesses 10 can be sprung apart to provide additional clearance space for a file or similar tool. when sharpening the same. After being. sharpened the thicknesses can be readily assembled and securedin workingrela-tion .to each other. It will be understood that by moving the yoke member 2 toward andlaway from the locking pawl E the grapple member can be adjusted for operationuponsmaller or larger sizes of casings orties.v

The hoisting grapple includes spaced upper and lower horizontally. disposed U- shaped frames 13 andl hthe. ends. of the upper frame; 13 being curved downwardly at 13 andzsecured at.15 to ;the sides ofthe lower frame 14: and r the two framesbeing The connected. by vertical. side. bars 16. upper ends of theseside bars 16 are curved outwardly at 16 to clear the casing or pipe 0, terminating in eyes 17 which are. ei'rgaged by hoisting chains 18, said chains being shownas. connected to the hook 19 of some conventional hoistingmeans, such as a block and tackle. The curved ends of the superposed; frames 13 and 14 provide a fixed abutment for one side of the casing C, the opposite. side of the casing being engaged by a locking pawl F which is substantially identical" inconstruction with the locking pawl E. The bolt 20 upon which the locking pawl F is mounted is adapted to be in serted into any one of a series of openings 21; thereby-enabling the pawl to be moved in and outand properlyadjnsted for larger and smaller sizes ofwell casings. A cross bar'21' which is secured to an intermediate port-ionof-the lockingpawl F is similar to the before mentioned cross bar 8 of the pawl E, and operates inthe same manner to provide a stop for engagement with the upper edges of the. horizontal frame 1i. to limit the downward movement of the pawl.

In the operation of the device the two grapple members are "assembled and applied to the casing in substantially the same manner for'either 'aising or lowering the same. When it is desired to lower a section of "casing-or: pipe into thev well opening, the lockingpawl ofthe stationary grapple member is swung into operative position and causedto engage the casing to support the same while'the hoisting grapple memher is moved upwardlyupon the casing to obtain a firm grip thereon, the pawl F of the hoisting grapple being swung into inoperative position during this upward movement. When the hoisting gapple is in proper position the pawl F thereof is swung into operative engagement with the casing, and the pawl E of the stationary grapple memberswung away from the easing. The casing can then be lowered, being securely gripped duringthe lowering move ment by the hoistinggrapplc. lVhen. it is necessary to movesthe hoisting grapple upwardly on the casing to obtain a fresh grip, the pawl Eof the stationary grapple means is again swunginto operative position to support the casing, and hold it against backward movement or slipping. lVhen pulling a length of easing, or pipe from the well openingthe locking pawls of both the stationary grapple member and the hoisting grapple member are swung into operative position, andthe hoisting grapple member moved up and down. by the action of the hoisting means. Upon the downward movement of the hoisting grapple the locking pawl F thereof willautomatically swing-upwardly to release the casing while the locking pawlE of the stationary grapple member willautomatically swing downwardly and grip the casing. In a reverse manner the pawl E of the stationary grapple means will'swing upwardly and release the casing, while the pawl F of the hoisting grapple means will swing downwardly and grip the casing upon the upward movement of the hoisting grapple.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A casing grapple member including an open frame through which the casing passes and which is provided with an abutment for one side of the casing, a pivot bolt extending transversely across the open frame, and a swinging locking pawl mounted upon the pivot bolt in operative relation to the abutment, said pawl being formed of several superposed thicknesses of material which terminate at the swinging end of the bolt in spaced transversely extending sharpened edges adapted to bite into and grip the casing. a

2. A casing grapple member including an open frame through which the casing passes and which is provided with an abutment for one side of the casing, a pivot bolt extending transversely across the open frame, and a swinging locking pawl mounted upon the pivot bolt in operative relation to the abutment said pawl being formed of doubled third thickness of material interposed between the doubled thicknesses, the ends of the three thicknesses of material terminating in spaced transversely extending sharpened edges adapted to bite into and grip the casing.

3. A casing grapple member including an open frame through which the casing passes, a yoke fitted within the frame and slidable longitudinally thereon, a crossbar applied to the curved end of the yoke, the ends of the cross bar slidably engaging the frame and spaces being provided between the said ends of the cross bar and curved, portions of the yoke, and clamping bolts extending through the said spaces and serving to lock the yoke in an adjusted position.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ERIOH C. ARTZT.

Witnesses EDWIN BINDSEIL, OSCAR MUELLER.

Gopiev of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G." 

